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Brief Profile

Jamaicans are the largest group of American immigrants from the English-speaking Caribbean and have been immigrating for many years.
Jamaicans are proud of their culture, and many cultural events in Jamaica are also observed by Jamaican Americans in local public celebrations and in their homes. Jamaicans are well known for their love of reggae music, and traditional foods such as Jerk chicken have become commonplace throughout many areas in North America.

In Jamaican enclaves such as the Flatbush area of Brooklyn, NY, it is common to see Jamaican grocery stores filled with delicacies such as sugar cane, jelly coconut, and yams. Jamaican Americans participate in the annual New York City Caribbean Labor day parade and dress in lavish and colorful costumes representing their cultural heritage. The vast majority of Jamaican Americans are of black Afro-Caribbean descent, and as such, many have assimilated to some degree into the wider African-American community. Their primary languages are English and Jamaican Creole English, and their primary religion is Christianity.

"After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb."(Revelation 7:9, NIV)